How a Self Help Group gets women out of poverty

Venkatamma has been making her livelihood by selling tender coconuts for the past 33 years. When she lost her husband a few years ago, she was not only devastated by his death, she was in a shock when her own children abandoned her shortly thereafter. Her mental and health condition began to deteriorate and to make matters worse she was unable to support herself financially.

Not to be deterred by the change of events, she decided to take matters in her own hands. She joined the Roshini Self Help Group in October 2015 which is supported by United Way Bengaluru. After undergoing the requisite training she was able to avail a loan of Rs 8000. She reinvested the money in her business. Now she sells around 500 tender coconuts once in three to four days and earns a tidy profit.

A visibly happy Venkatamma says, “I’m blessed to have gotten this opportunity to expand my business. With the extra amount of money that I earned I was able to refurbish my damaged house, reinvest in my business and also meet my day to day expenses.”